Wiggle Dragon Ride 2013

BlakeysFC

Going to have to drop out of this one unfortunately.

Think £55 is too much for an open road sportive, think I'm going to enter the Etape Cymru instead as that is £55 too, but on Closed Roads which kind of makes it worth it for me personally.

bendertherobot

dodgy wrote:

I don't ride Sportives, but if I and a group of friends did this every year and the ballot introduced a level of risk for one member of the group being unsuccessful, then he could just turn up and ride, as long as he didn't use the feedstops? Wouldn't bother me, especially if he tried to enter but couldn't.

Yep. To be honest, last year, me and the boys started 1/2 hour early, parked somewhere else and missed out one feedstation.

dmclite-3.0

I'm still in, got the old secret pound coin jar from the garage that I put in over the year and use that to pay for the likes of this, that way i don't see the cost of it.

Road Red

I'm out this year.

I've done a few, and last year was the best, but at £55 its a bit rich. The roads are there every day for free.

Still good luck to those to go, it is a great route.

nunowoolmez

I'm in. Went for the Ballot tho.

Cubic

I'm not in (yet anyway, could have a change of heart). The price increase and ballot have put me off. I think I'll try to do the Merlin ride or Tour of the Black Mountains instead.

twotyred

Well I've ponied up because judging from last years comments the route and organisation have improved greatly and this will probably be my last Dragon ride as hopefully I'll be moving back north in 2014.

proto

I'm in. In the grand scheme of things £55 isn't so shocking.

Rode it this year and a brilliant event.

lemon63

Pay £45 for ballot entry, if you don't get in they refund you in December minus £1 for admin fees. :shock:

ManOfKent

I'm not happy about the price increase, particularly as there's no attempt on the website to justify it.

But I've entered the ballot because I have unfinished business with the Dragon Ride. Assuming I get in, this will be the last year I do it. If I don't get a place I'll be £45 better off than I am now. Either way I hope to go to south Wales in the spring to ride some of the roads with a mate.

The Abergavenny events look good and I may be able to do them this year, depending on the exact dates.

P.S. For anyone wondering whether to go for Gran or Medio Fondo... enter the Gran. You can always switch to the shorter route on the day; I don't think the opposite applies.

tivvy

sorry to tell you manofkent but you only get back £44 because as the website says

"Please note: the small transaction fee of just over £1 will not be refunded."
just think of all those refunds, can't be a bad way to make a couple of extra quid

dodgerdog

I wish I was able to enter this again this year. I did the GF and it was immense in all the ways you could measure a sportive. I loved the fast sweeping descents 8) , bludgeoned my way up the interminable climbs :shock: and pushed myself between the two. Had it not been for too much time at the second fed station and a snapped chain needing replacement I reckon I would have got into the Bronze zone.

Unfortunately, this year I will not be in the country for the majority of the sportive season and indeed will be forced of the bike for spring/summer and hence this and the Etape are off the calendar this year. Boohooo!

£55 is a lot to guarantee a place and clearly Human Race having taken over this are seeking to a degree to exploit the opportunity knowing that it is one of the premier sportives in the country (by reputation). Regardless of that I would be stumping up the cash as it was definitely the higlight this year of my summer season and I have unfinished business involving a Silver/Gold time :?

To all those thinking about it, go for it and ingore the nahsayers. Enjoy it for what it is, a goal for your summer. Organisation was great alothough I would recommend leaving the M4 a Junction early to avoid the traffic nightmare getting into Margam Park and ensure you get your training miles in as well as planning your drinks and nutrition. Enjoy it for all it is and if you cannot, then enjoy it for me as I will be stranded thousands of miles away and very frustrated at not being able to ride it.

onceboy

Hope i,m in can,t understand being given a priortiy entry then having to be entered into the ballot beats me

ManOfKent

tivvy wrote:

sorry to tell you manofkent but you only get back £44 because as the website says

"Please note: the small transaction fee of just over £1 will not be refunded."
just think of all those refunds, can't be a bad way to make a couple of extra quid

No, I paid £46.11 and will get back £45 if I'm not accepted.

I have to agree about the retained "transaction fees", although I wonder whether the increased price will put off enough people that they won't end up oversubscribed.

tivvy

sorry manofkent didn't realise they'd have the nerve to add a transaction fee to the £45, thought they'd at least hide it in the price.I've done it for the last 2 yrs and agree its a great route, but it is the manner in which they've gone about it this year saying "to make it fair for everyone its a ballot" but if you give us an extra £10 you can avoid the fair ballot, kind of leaves a sour taste.. any roads, hope you get in and have a great ride

sampras38

I've done the £45 ballot but if I don't get in I'll probably ride it anyway without the feedstops as a friend is in and we're both using it as Marmotte prep. It'll be my 4th Dragon and 2nd Marmotte.

I was surprised at the price hike but I guess people will still pay it.

mtbkim

Hi
I'm in! Really looking forward to it, but as I've never ridden more than 100miles, a bit wary too!

I'm looking at camping the night before & riding to the start to save traffic worries. I don't think there's camping on site? Any recommendations for a campsite close by?

Cheers!

ugo.santalucia

Everybody complaining, moaning about the price increase, but entering anyway... I did it once and found it crap and I will never be seen again there.
take a stand, show Mr Lunardi your longest finger (the middle that is) the market is full of sportives, much better than this over rated "tour of the dullest roads in South Wales"...you keep paying, he keeps laughing and putting the price up... I don't get you people...

Grill

I agree that the price is extortionate, but the course takes in some really good climbs/descents and beautiful scenery and is very well organized. Definitely worth 25-30 quid...

ugo.santalucia

Grill wrote:

but the course takes in some really good climbs/descents and beautiful scenery

All sportives do...

Grill

Box Hill is not a climb... :P

aphill24

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Everybody complaining, moaning about the price increase, but entering anyway... I did it once and found it crap and I will never be seen again there.
take a stand, show Mr Lunardi your longest finger (the middle that is) the market is full of sportives, much better than this over rated "tour of the dullest roads in South Wales"...you keep paying, he keeps laughing and putting the price up... I don't get you people...

I totally agree, this is taking the p*** I live local and wouldn't dream of paying £55 to ride this event. What are you getting for the money may I ask? Just because it was a success last year they have obviously thought lets try to fleece them while the iron is hot because the year before it was a disaster. Perhaps I am a tight bar steward but with the cost of living, a couple of kids £55 is a hell of a lot of money to justify, I can do the weekly shop for that ( ok not quite)
Saying that I am willing to help cyclists find accommodation so If anyone is looking for B&B google green acres motel North Cornelly as you can ride to the start in 10 mins.They serve a nice pint there too.

ManOfKent

It looks as though they are trying to add a bit more for the money - post-ride massages and the like. Quite how that will work for 3,000+ riders remains to be seen.

http://humanrace.co.uk/news/35-latest-n ... n-24-hours

ugo.santalucia

ManOfKent wrote:

It looks as though they are trying to add a bit more for the money - post-ride massages and the like.

I think if you ask 10 riders out of 10 will tell you they prefer to pay for a massage if they actually want one, rather than to pay in advance regardless... I assume they won't be able to offer a free massage to 3000 riders, unless they have hired all the masseurs in Wales for the day

Ankles50

ManOfKent wrote:

It looks as though they are trying to add a bit more for the money - post-ride massages and the like. Quite how that will work for 3,000+ riders remains to be seen.

http://humanrace.co.uk/news/35-latest-n ... n-24-hours

They were available this year, i had one then went off and filled my boots on the free food & drink. So that cannot be the justification for price hike

ugo.santalucia

The way it used to work as I understood and I apologise if my information is not accurate, is that the organiser, Mr Lunardi, used to make his living organising the Dragon ride, meaning there was enough money into it to pay a full time salary for one person. Given most sportives are organised by volunteers with a charitable aim, I am a bit uncomfortable with the idea of somebody making a living out of organising one single event.
If the event was way better than any other in terms of organisation, one could even accept that professionalism pays off, but typically this has been for years one of the worst sportives in the country in terms of organisation and logistics.

There is the argument that the Dragon Ride supports the economy of one of the most deprived areas in the country, but even there a lot more could be done, involving the local communities and making it into a weekend bike fest as seen in the continent.
Given this is not the case, it seems to me all a bit rich

ManOfKent

ugo.santalucia wrote:

The way it used to work as I understood and I apologise if my information is not accurate, is that the organiser, Mr Lunardi, used to make his living organising the Dragon ride, meaning there was enough money into it to pay a full time salary for one person. Given most sportives are organised by volunteers with a charitable aim, I am a bit uncomfortable with the idea of somebody making a living out of organising one single event.
If the event was way better than any other in terms of organisation, one could even accept that professionalism pays off, but typically this has been for years one of the worst sportives in the country in terms of organisation and logistics.

There is the argument that the Dragon Ride supports the economy of one of the most deprived areas in the country, but even there a lot more could be done, involving the local communities and making it into a weekend bike fest as seen in the continent.
Given this is not the case, it seems to me all a bit rich

His name is Lou Lusardi and he's been involved since the beginning. Whether it was his only source of income, I've no idea. Last year's event was well organised but the 2011 version wasn't and I understand that was not unusual. I'm sure you have a point about the commercial aspect of it. The price increase this year may well reflect that it's no longer a one man show, since it's now owned by Human Race and operated by BreakAway Events, each of whom will want a cut.

As I posted earlier, the steep cost means I will do it once more at most. I'll look to support some other less popular sportives instead.

derek48

Does anyone know what proportion of the entries are 'guaranteed' and what proprtion go into the ballot? It's not clear from the website.

jimmurray

According to Cycling Weekly; 3,500 guaranteed, 1,000 ballot and 500 charity places.

derek48

Some quotes from the website

' Th general entry this year will be in the form of a ballot'

'As guaranteed places are limited, there will be plenty of people who get a place in the ride via the ballot'

' A limited number of guaranteed entry places will be available on a first come first served basis'

Rather disingenuous if the numbers quoted from Cycling Weekly are correct. Look like the default entry fee is £55. Why not just come out and say it.